Matricom G-Box Q Media Streamer

PROS

Outstanding game performance

No restrictions

Fast and reliable

Several connections

CONS

Price

Slow wireless connections

Audio cuts out

VERDICT

The Matricom G-Box Q media streamer may cost more than most of the competitor players, but it delivers high value for its price point. There's no hacking required to enjoy the full Kodi experience with tons of content, gaming is elevated to a new level, and there's vast internal storage. Sometimes there are issues that compromise the user experience, such as a temperamental wireless connection, so we cannot give it a perfect rating.

Matricom manufactures the G-Box Q. It first launched the product on November 21, 2014, and its first 1,000 units sold immediately. It is a box offering both on-demand and streaming video content, from movies and TV episodes to games. It is a hit with people who are TV or movie addicts, gamers of all ability levels, and general users who are not interested in hacking their players.

Here are the main features:

Outstanding Game Performance

Any gamer will appreciate this set-top player. The novice and intermediate level user will enjoy access to a range of games and clarity of picture, as well as its smoothness during play. The expert gamer will find it difficult to go back to other boxes after using the 8x 3D GPU graphics processor that elevates their gaming experience to the next level. Enjoy plenty of room for games too with 16GB of internal storage included with box purchase.

No Restrictions

The GB-ox Q is perfect for anyone not wanting to do any hacking on their player. It has Kodi fully available, unlike the competitor players. Stable Kodi is the foundation for the Matricom Media Center software within the box. While many other manufacturers make it difficult to jailbreak a streamer to add Kodi, GBox Q gives you all Kodi access all the time, right from the get-go.

Fast and Reliable

On the G-Box Q, content streams fast and reliably, even for live programs. In addition to having dual-band Wi-Fi, it has Ethernet too for secure, reliable data transmission. The box powers up quickly and you can watch video content when you want or play games of choice any time of the day. You feel fully in control and have around-the-clock entertainment.

Several Connections

There are several connection points on this set-top player, unlike some of the competitor models. The primary benefit is the multifunctionality of the box. It has two USB 2.0 host ports, as well as a microSD slot up to 64GB. Enjoy audio output (AV, HDMI, and optical S/PDIF) so you can attach headphones, hear alerts, watch shows with full audio, hear music, and more. The video output (AV and HDMI 1.4 up to 4K30) provides a great picture resolution on your TV and aspect ratio.

Some downsides of the media streamer are:

Price

The G-Box Q is on the higher end of the media player spectrum. It can be upwards of $250, at full price. However, we found it for significantly less through the link at the top of this page. It is just over $100 with the deal, which is quite the savings and easier to swallow considering the features you get with the box.

Slow Wireless Connections

Some online reviewers explain that they have slow wireless connections. While the slow periods are not every day, according to the majority of reviewers, there are enough reviewers online saying it happens now and then that we want to disclose this problem to you. Most users, however, say they have fast connections.

Audio Cuts Out

A minority of online reviewers indicate their audio cuts out sometimes on the G-Box Q, either while playing games or watching video content (such as movies). The solution is to restart the box; those reviewers explain the reboot fixes the issue.